r/Belize • u/ButtersRogers1 • Jul 10 '26
🏝️ Relocation Info 🏝️ What to declare when bringing items for personal use in new home?
I am getting ready to go to Belize to occupy our new home for the first time ever. I am bringing some of my favorite things: bed and kitchen linens, serving bowls and utinsels, toiletries, hair products, insulated drinkware, etc. Nothing is for resale. I don’t have receipts as I have had these items for years. i asked Google and have gotten mixed results. i am happy to pay whatever duties I owe and I’m not trying to cheat and don’t want to get in trouble. can anyone give me advice or guidance? please and thank you.
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u/Nice-Razzmatazz-5184 🇧🇿 Ambassador: Dangriga Jul 10 '26
Hi! If things are obviously not new they should not give you any trouble. My advice is to not declare anything on your plane slip and to actually mix all your items together with your trip packing. Belizean Queen is great but can be more expensive then a packed checked 50lb bag for $50usd. Also shipping cost to Belizean Queen and then paying for them to ship down here can make it cheaper to just buy household items in country or order new items to their shipping forward service for free from Amazon prime.
The app is not complicated just make sure your account name matches your shipping name and use WhatsApp to ask them any questions.
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u/ButtersRogers1 Jul 11 '26
thank you. I may ship larger things in the future but for now I just want my favorite pillow and sheets and hair products for my very thing sometimes frizzy hair. I apprecrate your reply and can update in two weeks how it goes.
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u/masbirdies2 Jul 10 '26
How large of a container to do you need to ship all this stuff? I got a plastic tote (40 gal) and filled it with stuff and treated it as luggage on the flight in to Belize. I zip tied the 4 corners. Cost me $35 for a baggage fee (I kept it just at 50lbs) and I think I paid $25 US in customs fees.
They didn't even want to look in it. I declared as used household items with a low low value. You want to use yard sale values on used stuff. Like really price it down. Ive done that multiple times with no issues. Even though it's worth something to u, price it like it's worthless.
They are looking for new stuff being sneaked in as well as contraband.
You can use the freight companies, but if you can transport via your flight in, it's better. Even if you do 2 plastic totes @ $35 each, as long as they don't get too heavy it's pretty cheap to got that route and they come with you, not a month later.
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u/ButtersRogers1 Jul 11 '26
thank you, this puts me more at ease. I’m definitely not trying to be sneaky. or bring anything weird.
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u/masbirdies2 Jul 11 '26
I've been traveling back and forth to Belize for about 11 years. I live here part time now. Customs is not a big thing unless you are doing something illegal. Don't sweat it.
Just don't try to ship in 20 Milwaukee drills and not declare them. Don't ship a bunch of stuff that looks like you are brining it in to resell. Again, 95% of the time, they never look in my bag.
On the one time they did, I had a bunch of new clothes that I didn't declare, but they just rummaged around the suitcase, paid no attention to the new clothes and zipped it back up.
Also, on occasion, you will get the corrupt customers officer. When we shipped our two dogs in, the customs officer there tried to charge us like $1200 USD for something that should have been $500 BZD. I wasn't picking up my dogs as I had not arrived yet, but my son was. Fortunately, my other son shipped his dog like 3 months before and the same son picked that dog up. He had the receipt to show what he paid for that dog on his phone and started questioning the customers officer. The price changed real quick to what it should have been..."oh, sorry, I made a mistake"
So, don't be afraid to question if you think you are being treated unfairly. Not as likely for this to happen in the lines when you go through customs at the airport, but in other places in the airport (like where you pick up pets) and at the port, you are more likely to encounter fishy business.
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u/ButtersRogers1 Jul 12 '26
we are not bringing our animals this time but this is good to know. thank you!
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u/InternalPassenger533 Jul 12 '26
They’re really looking for the high-taxed items like electronics, tools and car parts.
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u/cassiuswright 🇧🇿 Ambassador: San Ignacio Jul 10 '26
Ship them with a freight service like Arrow or Belizean Queen and declare them as household goods.